Violet Fairy gently patted the King's shoulder and comforted him, "No, Your Majesty, this is not your fault. A fated curse, like a prophecy, is difficult to change the outcome, no matter how much effort is put in…"
Seeing that the King no longer wished to look at the image in the mirror, Rhine also gently wiped his small hand across the mirror, erasing the image.
As for the distant future, he could not be certain.
If it followed the most popular version of 'Sleeping Beauty' on the market, exactly 100 years after the princess fell into slumber, a handsome prince would brave thorns and thistles, successfully kiss the princess, and break the spell.
However, even Rhine was not entirely sure if, in this world, the story would perfectly follow the happy ending described above.
After all, there were too many circulating versions of fairy tales. For example, in the more primitive 'Sleeping Beauty' prototype, 'Sun, Moon, and Talia,' the subsequent story involved rape and cannibalism, which was truly unsuitable for children. The one who awakened the princess was not a prince, but the rapist King of a neighboring country.
The moment he retracted the mirror, Rhine clearly felt the influx of wish power into his soul, and his own magic increased significantly.
—By relying on a transmigrator's foresight, he successfully fulfilled the King and Queen's wish to 'see the future'!
Even if the future was not beautiful.
When Rhine fulfilled this wish, he also gained a trace of true prophetic power. Using this new power, Rhine could perceive distant or future scenes, though the information was very vague unless he obtained a suitable medium.
—As early as when he was providing free medical treatment, Rhine discovered that repeatedly fulfilling the same person's wish would greatly diminish its effectiveness. Generally, only the first one or two times had significant results. Now that Rhine had fulfilled the King and Queen's wishes twice, he needed to find other 'protagonists of fate.'
The Queen looked at the Little Magician, who was silently putting away the silver mirror, and was already sobbing uncontrollably:
"Your Excellency Rhine, is this our destined fate?
"Can we not use any method to break the curse, to prevent this misfortune from arriving?"
Under everyone's astonished gazes, Rhine shook his head:
"No, according to the principles of magic, every curse has a way to be lifted; otherwise, it could not have been cast in the first place.
"When Black Witch Maleficent cast the curse, she already set the conditions for its removal.
"As long as we meet this condition, we can lift the curse without waiting until Her Royal Highness the Princess's 15th birthday."
The 12 Witches, as well as the King and Queen, fell silent simultaneously.
They, of course, knew what the method to completely remove the curse from the Little Princess was.
Killing Black Witch would lift the curse!
"But Black Witch's magic is too powerful; we cannot possibly fight her!" the King wailed.
He immediately thought of another possibility and asked tentatively:
"Could it be, Your Excellency Rhine, that you mean you are capable of defeating Black Witch Maleficent?"
Could it be that during the previous battle, Rhine still had unused trump cards hidden?
Was he confident in himself to propose this suggestion?
Rhine smiled faintly and replied with certainty:
"No."
The youth continued:
"Tonight, we were fighting Maleficent, who had just finished casting a powerful curse.
"If we challenge Black Witch Maleficent later, she will only be more powerful and more invincible than she was tonight!"
The King's mouth twitched, and his face instantly turned ugly.
Since Black Witch was so powerful as to be almost invincible, what was the point of saying this?
Who could kill her?
He had known before that Black Witch Maleficent was more formidable than the other 12 Witches, but he had not expected the difference between them to be as vast as a chasm.
The 12 Witches also had solemn expressions, like still water.
In the previous battle, the giant dragon that Black Witch transformed into left a deep impression on them.
Even among spellcasters who wield magic, distort nature, and reshape reality, the disparity between them was despair-inducing.
Even if the entire kingdom's army gathered together, facing such an inhuman beast, their morale would instantly collapse!
Numbers alone simply could not defeat a dragon.
"Your Majesty…"
Scanning the gloomy faces of everyone, the Little Magician pulled up his white-gold robe and bowed lightly to the King:
"Indeed, with my own strength and the kingdom's Soldiers, it is impossible to defeat the giant dragon that Black Witch transformed into.
"However, a blessed warrior can do it!"
After studying magic books, Rhine gained a deep understanding of the transcendent powers in this world.
Not only could magicians use wondrous magic, but powerful warriors could also train their bodies to be far stronger than those of Earthlings!
Rhine raised his voice:
"Your Majesty, I know of such a warrior, braver and more intelligent than every Knight under your command.
"This warrior was bathed in powerful magic at birth, possesses extraordinary physique, is impervious to blades and spears, is proficient in every sword art in the world, skilled with every weapon, armor, and shield, and may even understand a little magic.
"When this warrior draws their treasured sword, only gods can rival them in swordsmanship; when they draw their bowstring, arrows can traverse half the kingdom to pierce their target.
"When this warrior rides a magnificent horse across the battlefield, even a scattered army will yield to their charisma and obey their commands!
"When this warrior sings a battle song before a routed army, even a undisciplined force will reassemble, willing to die for them!
"I believe such a warrior can lead Your Majesty's army, kill Black Witch, and lift the curse from its root!"